ABC's ARLETTE SAENZ: President Obama taped a message that was played in the room just
before the Democratic debate began. Though he won't be on the debate
stage tonight, Vice President Joe Biden was featured in some of the images
included in the president's message.

"We’re gonna have to fight just as hard in this election as
we did in the last two," the president said. "No matter who’s on the
ballot next November that's the choice we’re going to face and that’s why I’m
still fired up and still ready to go."

"I’m asking you to work even harder," he said. "If
we do that, I know Democrats won’t just win the white house and congress, elections
down the ticket, we’ll keep building on the extraordinary progress of the last
several years."

The Last Time Each Candidate Was on the Debate Stage

ABC's PAOLA CHAVEZ and VERONICA STRACQUALURSI: Hillary Clinton was running for president the last time she
stood on a debate stage. It was the last Democratic presidential primary debate
between herself and Sen. Barack Obama. Things were fiery between her and Obama
although they were debating in the City of Brotherly Love on April 16, 2008.

The former Rhode Island governor Lincoln Chafee’s last
debate was October 27, 2010. The debate was held at Bryant University in
Smithfield, Rhode Island. Back then, Chafee was running as an Independent.

The candidate who’s gone the longest without seeing a debate
stage is Jim Webb. Webb was running for U.S. Senate to represent the state of
Virginia. October 9, 2006 marked the last debate between Webb and
then-incumbent senator George Allen.

Despite being an outsider in the Democratic race, Sen.
Bernie Sanders is no stranger to the stage. Sanders has run for elected office
more than a dozen times, his last debate was October 23, 2006.

Former Maryland Governor’s last debate was for the 2010
gubernatorial election on October 21, 2010.Martin O’Malley was successfully
re-elected for a second term in office, the race was the first gubernatorial
ticket in Maryland to received more than one million votes.

What Republicans are Up to During Democratic Debate

ABC's PAOLA CHAVEZ:While Democratic hopefuls are doing last minute preparations
for tonight’s first debate, Republican candidates get a chance to sit back,
enjoy some popcorn and watch the debate unravel.

Here’s what the GOP hopefuls are up to:

RICK PERRY

Former Gov. of Texas may not be running for President, but
he is coincidentally passing through Sin City, posting this yesterday.

What the O'Malley Campaign Strategy is for Tonight

ABC's MARYALICE PARKS: Former Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley plans to say tonight that
Clinton is not ready to be president according to his campaign spokesperson.

"I would say that he
should double down tonight, and make the case that he is ready for
president and she is not,” deputy campaign
manager Lis Smith told CNN today.

So far, despite his efforts campaigning in early states, O’Malley has not been
able to break through in the polls, and lately, he has been ramping up
his criticisms of frontrunner Hillary Clinton. Many expect him to go
all-in and on the offensive tonight. Will he go after Senator Bernie Sanders
too? According to Smith, he plans to highlight policy differences between
himself and Sanders, especially on gun control. On the stump O’Malley is quick
to highlight his record in Maryland where he passed stricter gun control
measures.

Smith
added that the campaign is not yet worried about the polls. "I would
not say it is a do-or-die debate,” she continued. “He is a great guy with
a great story to tell."

Sanders' Campaign Manager on Bernie's Game Plan: 'There's Not Going to be Bombs Thrown"

ABC's MARYALICE PARKS: Bernie
Sanders campaign manager Jeff Weaver told ABC News that the Vermont Senator is
first and foremost focused on “introducing himself” to Democratic voters. He
added that many primary voters do not yet know enough about him to have an
opinion. And he’s right. According to the ABC- Washington Post poll out this morning, 30
percent of respondents did not yet have an opinion of him, including 26 percent
of registered voters. As far as overall strategy, he said Sanders does not plan on going on the attack, but will be sticking to his
message. "There’s not going to be bombs thrown, no major surprises,” Weaver said.

Weaver
said he ate breakfast with Bernie and and Jane Sanders this morning in their
hotel in Henderson, Nevada, which is about 15 miles away from Las Vegas. He
said Sanders was calm and rested. He said that their conversation focused on
the Senator's responses to potential attacks, specifically about his record on
guns among other issues. Weaver added that he thinks the others will try to
paint Sanders as not electable, not presidential.

As
far as their preparations go, Weaver said they have done very little “mock-
debate” work. Instead, he said they have sat around a conference table sharing
ideas and brainstorming potential questions and answers.

Polling Note --

ABC's GARY LANGER and GREGORY HOLYK: Hillary Clinton heads into the first Democratic presidential debate with a slight gain in her basic popularity among all adults. But she’s weaker among independents and vastly unpopular among Republicans.

Among all adults, 47 percent see Clinton favorably in the latest ABC News/Washington Post poll, vs. 49 percent unfavorably. If not an inspiring score, that’s better than her 45-53 percent in August, when her unfavorable rating was a point from its highest in ABC/Post polls since 1992. Read more.

Well Wishes for Bernie?

ABC's MARYALICE PARKS: Bernie
Sanders’s wife, Jane Sanders reached out to fans today, asking them to sign a
card for the Senator before his big night tonight.

Jane,
who almost always accompanies Bernie Sanders on the road at campaign events,
wrote about the first Democratic Party debate tonight. "We’re all a little
bit nervous,” she said. "It will be the first time Bernie gets a chance to
share his message with a national audience of millions of people at once. But
we’re also excited for the opportunity.”

Bernie likes
to say in his speeches that he and Jane have been married 27-years and
have seven grandchildren. Last week in Boulder, Colorado he called Jane “one
tough lady.”

"I don’t know how she does it,” he
said.

In her
note today, Jane described first meeting him. "Many of you know the story
of how I first met Bernie: I organized a debate while he was running for Mayor
of Burlington, Vermont. When I heard him speak, he embodied everything I had
ever believed in. I just fell in love that night … with his ideas. And shortly
after with Bernie himself.”

Learn more about the former Governor of Maryland, Martin O'Malley, before tonight's debate.

by Veronica.Stracqualursi

POTUS Won't Watch Dems Debate "Wire to Wire"

ABC's BENJAMIN SIEGEL: White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said he doesn’t expect
President Obama to watch the Democratic debate “wire-to-wire” this
evening, given the MLB playoff games.

I don’t think he will watch it wire-to-wire,” Earnest said
at the ongoing daily press briefing. “I anticipate that he will be doing a
little channel surfing.”

Hillary’s been debating the issues that matter to Americans since high school. Tell her you’re with her before she takes the stage at the first Democratic Party debate tomorrow in Las Vegas!<br><br>Link in bio.

Draft Biden Releases New TV Ad to Air Before Democratic Debate

ABC's ARLETTE SAENZ: Draft Biden, the super-PAC urging Joe Biden to run for president, released a new ad today that will run before tonight’s first Democratic debate, which the vice president is not scheduled to attend.

The ad, titled “Never Quit,” replaces the emotional spot featuring the story of Biden's personal experience with tragedy after the death of his first wife, Neilia, and 1-year-old daughter Naomi in a 1972 car crash. Read the full article here.

Draft Biden, the super-PAC urging Joe Biden to run for president, released this ad today that will run before tonight’s first Democratic debate, which the vice president is not scheduled to attend.

NEVADA’S HARRY REID VS. NEW HAMPSHIRE, IOWA

ABC’s ALANA ABRAMSON: In a live interview with
Washington Post reporter Paul Kane last night, Nevada’s senior Sen. Harry Reid,
a Democrat, sharply criticized the presidential primary saying states like Iowa
and New Hampshire shouldn’t have such an outsize role in the process.

“You go to New
Hampshire there are not any minorities there and no one lives there. You go to
Iowa and there are a few people there, but again it’s a place that does not
demonstrate what America is all about, for a lot of different reasons.” he
said. By contrast, he said his home state is more representative of the
country.“I don’t mean to denigrate New Hampshire or Iowa but they
shouldn’t be the ones choosing who’s going to be president.”

Reid declined to endorse any of the Democratic candidates in
the race, noting that in 2008, he didn’t endorse until after the caucuses.(He
threw his support behind Barack Obama in June 2008).

When asked about Vice President Joe Biden, he said “he’s a
man who’s overcome a lot and I like him.” Reid offered the comments at a debate
“pre-game event” hosted by the Washington Post at the MGM Grand Hotel and
Conference Center in Las Vegas.

According to ABC News' New Hampshire affiliate station WMUR, fellow Democrats Gov. Maggie Hassan and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen called for an apology from Sen. Reid for "insulting" the Granite State.

“Sen.
Reid’s disparaging comments about New Hampshire are as insulting as they are
wrong, and an apology would certainly be appropriate." Gov. Hassan wrote in a statement released today.

"Obviously I think that Harry Reid is wrong.
He doesn’t understand the New Hampshire primary and why it’s so important to
the election process. Clearly, he hasn’t been to New Hampshire," Sen. Shaheen added, according to WMUR.

5 Candidates and 5 Things They Need to Prove at the First Democratic Debate

ABC's MARYALICE PARKS and LIZ KREUTZ: Hillary Clinton is the frontrunner, and tonight she needs to remind people why. After a summer bogged down with her ongoing email controversy and dropping poll numbers, Clinton now has a fresh opportunity to reintroduce her vision for the presidency to voters, and to step up to the plate and prove party skeptics wrong.

For the first time, she will come face to face with her closest challenger, and the progressive favorite, Bernie Sanders.

In many ways, Sanders has the most to lose. As the leading alternative to Clinton, he comes into the night with the most momentum and excitement behind him. The question now – can he handle it?

Martin O’Malley has set expectations high for himself, and his campaign has been busy tweeting pictures showing the young, studly governor getting ready, working hard, and working out! But O’Malley needs to do more than look good, he needs to make something happen. Stuck in single digits in the polls, O’Malley needs a big night.

Lincoln Chafee’s primary concern on the debate stage will be to introduce himself and his record to the majority of voters who do not know him. Like Chafee, Jim Webb’s first task is to introduce himself and his ideas to the American people.